Fading Summer Warmth
by radiogirl
Summary: Born under the heat of the prairie sun, the warmth of summer held the happiness of their love. In one summer they help each other find out who they truly are. No one can keep the summer forever, and when the warmth fades, their true spirit shines through.
1. Michael

Author's Note: Well, it seems I've decided to try it again. I haven't written for a very long time, I've been in a very long writer's block. I suddenly got the urge to write again the other night, though. I had this old story from another fan fiction genre, and I decided to make it Roswell. By reading this story, you have to let go of your preconceived notions of the characters. The way I portray them isn't exactly how they were on the show.  
  
Anyway, I hope you like this story as much as I do, and I hope it goes over well. Please review if you read it, even if you don't like it. I swear it will get more interesting in the upcoming chapters and hopefully those will be coming soon. OK! Enough blah blah blahing.  
  
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Fading Summer Warmth  
  
"Maria!" I heard the soft voice whisper through the wind of the hot June day. I looked up quickly to see the door to the house that was now so far away open, and saw my mother calling me. "Maria!" She called again and I began the trek back from the fields to the house. I walked through the long rows of corn slowly and ran my hands along the short corn stalks, just beginning to break through the soil into new life. I looked up at the sky which was slowly changing to a warm orange and would soon die out into night. Summer had come and the corn season was just beginning. I had graduated from high school five days ago. My high school days were over but the memories were never forgotten in my mind. Soon I would travel away from the farm to the big University- across the state from our small farming town in Nebraska. Soon I would no longer be surrounded by the fields of corn and the scattered houses that I was used to but would be surrounded by the huge buildings of Lincoln.  
  
I reached the house and opened the screen door, letting it slam behind me. I walked over to the kitchen table and sat next to my younger sister and brother who had already gathered at the table. My mother was working diligently at the stove to cook up our dinner. I heard the boards in the hall creak and looked over to see my father emerge from his bedroom, his hair freshly washed he looked clean and smelled of Ivory soap as he sat next to me at the head of the table. My mother brought over the meatloaf that she had made for our dinner that night and smiled at us all as she too sat at the other end of the table as my father. Without speaking we all took hands and my father led us in our daily prayer. The summer had just began and already the days were uniform, all running together in a series of repetition.  
  
We ate for probably five minutes in silence before my father finally spoke up. From the look on his stern face, I could tell he'd been thinking all day.  
  
"We had a good season this year," he said and everyone looked up at him to see what would follow. "We made money with the animals in the winter," he went on, "and I was thinking that we may need help this summer- tending to the corn and taking care of the farm."  
  
"Can we afford that, Harold?" My mother asked, the worry evident in her eyes. My father nodded a short quick nod.  
  
"I looked over the books last night to see if it is possible, and it is. We made a solid profit last season and it is definitely possible. Bob told me of a boy- he lives over in Wyoming. The boy is looking for work- a friend of Bob's family. Good boy- did good in school. Graduated two years ago but stayed to help his dad in their family business. What do you think Susan?" He said looking over at my mom. I saw my mother's forehead crease as it usually does when she is really thinking something through.  
  
"I'm just not sure, Harold. Are you completely sure we have enough for it?" "Susan, you know what good herds we had this year. We mad twice as much as we did the year before, don't be jaded. Last year was a bad year. I promise you we have enough, with the help of the boy I know our corn profit could possibly triple." He said and caught my mother's eye.  
  
"OK then. Hire the boy- it will be good to have some new young blood around this place anyway," she smiled. Her gaze fell on me and my father followed her glance.  
  
"Maria, would you mind having a boy your age living here? He would take the attic room." My father asked me, somewhat concerned.  
  
"Of course it's alright, Dad. I'm not five you know- boys don't have cooties anymore," I said and smiled at him.  
  
He smiled warmly at me and patted my leg, "good then, it is all settled. I will hire him and I suspect he will arrive Thursday."  
  
For the rest of the meal I was silent. Thursday would give me two days to prepare to have a boy living in our house- a boy my age. A boy who was not my brother. I was always a shy girl- I hardly ever talked at our small country school, I knew everyone and everyone knew me, but I kept my distance. You would probably call me a loner if you knew me. I had few friends in high school and didn't drink and smoke like the others in my school did. I mostly kept to myself except when I was with my friends. I just wasn't really used to interaction with people my age- especially boys.  
  
*~Thursday~*  
  
I looked out the window at the Taxi as it slowly rolled down the country road and entered the private road into our land. Before even seeing, I knew who was in that car. It was the boy- the boy who was going to work for my father. Michael was what my father said his name was. Michael was 20, two years older than I was, and he was from a medium-sized town in Wyoming. He worked for his father's trucking company. They sent trucks all over the country and Michael had skipped out on college so that he could stay and help his Dad with the business. He wanted to work up the money now, though, so that he could go to a university and learn so that he could move away from his Wyoming town. The car out front stopped and I anxiously waited to see this boy who would be staying in my house for the summer.  
  
"Is he here Ria?" I heard my father's voice behind me as I shifted my gaze briefly to see him heading towards the door.  
  
"Yes," I answered and I looked back out to see the boy getting out of the car. I can't really remember what I thought of Michael when I first saw him- whether I was disgusted or astonished, I truly can not remember. I watched him curiously as I saw my father emerge from the front door, a bright smile spread across his weathered face, and his eyes shown with the happiness that he felt to have some help this summer. Michael towered above my father, his broad shoulders relaxing when my father shook his hand with a friendly smile. The light reflected off his dark brown hair, and his smile lay crooked on his face.  
  
My father took his small suitcase and led Michael into the house. He came through the door, and immediately my younger brother and sister's heads popped shyly out of the door from the kitchen and my mother walked into the living room with a smile on her face and an apron wrapped around her waist.  
  
"Michael I presume?" My mother asked as she shook his hand.  
  
"Yes ma'am, it's very nice to meet you." He said with a slight hint of a southern drawl that made me wonder where he had gotten it as he smiled and looked around the small room.  
  
My father turned towards me. "Michael, this is my daughter, Maria, and the two peaking out of the door there are Johnny and Emily. They are the other members of the family- well, if you don't count the animals," he let out a small laugh and an uncomfortable silence followed his statement. I think we were all trying to get used to each other in a way. It had always been just Mom, Dad, Johnny, Emily, and I in the house and never had someone else lived with us.  
  
My dad helped Michael get his things up into the attic where he would be staying until late September while my mother worked on the dinner that we would eat that night and I was left to watch over Emily and Johnny. Johnny was 9 and Emily was 13 at that point. Emily could have very well taken care of Johnny by herself but my mother insisted that I also stay to watch over the little brats when she wasn't in the room. It's not that I hated my brother and sister, because they are nice siblings, but I just didn't understand why I had to watch over them 24/7.  
  
I sat on the couch while I watched them play a board game on the family room floor. I heard the boards in the floor creak behind me and I shifted my eyes and saw Michael enter the room. His presence was still unfamiliar in the house, and in a way his gaze made me uncomfortable as it landed on me. He slowly walked over and sat down on the couch next to me. I could feel the nervousness in the pit of my stomach. I just wasn't used to having people my age around the house, I guess, but I knew that it would take some time to get used to.  
  
"So, Maria right?" Michael asked.  
  
"Yup, that's me." I answered and smiled over at him.  
  
"So how old are you, Maria? You seem to be the one closest to my age in this whole house."  
  
"I'm 18. I just graduated from high school." I said, meeting his inquiring eyes.  
  
"Very cool," he nodded. "So are you going to go to college this year then?" He asked as he turned his attention away from the game and over in my direction.  
  
"Yeah, I'm going to UNL in the fall." I answered.  
  
"Very good school. I so want to go to college this fall. I just need to get the money. My parents don't have that much and I want to do as much for them money-wise as I can." Michael explained to me as we sat and watched Emily and Johnny fight over who had actually won the game.  
  
"So what are you going to major in then?" I asked. It was good to talk to someone- a male to be exact- and one who wasn't nine. We talked for about a half an hour, until my mother called us into the kitchen for dinner. Michael made me smile. He joked with me and kept trying to make me laugh. I guess I could say I had a little crush on Michael at that point, of course I never knew it at that time. 


	2. The Stars

Author's Note: Yay for my one reviewer! Hehe. I do seriously want to thank you though, wonderful reviewer, mysticvysgiyi. I do wish I had gotten more reviews, they are what makes this story possible. In times past, I wouldn't even post with just one review, but I do love this story. I just got out of a writer's block, and the fact that I can write again is still amazing to me, I just wish I had reviewers! Hehe. I promise you, the story will get better with time. Anyway, on to chapter two!  
  
Disclaimer: Don't own 'em. ('Em of course being Roswell)  
  
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*~ A week or so later ~*  
  
Michael and my father had been working hard for the past week or so to get Michael used to the chores and to get the animals and crops ready for the summer heat. Michael was learning the trade of my father's farm and doing quite well. We began to fall back into the routine that had been disrupted by Michael's arrival, and we all began to get use to an extra person in the house. Every night, when he joined us for dinner, my father would boast of the day's triumphs and how well Michael was learning how to farm here in Nebraska. I sat and watched them work sometimes, on the days when I would get so sad and lonely in the dark empty house because my mother was out at a friend's house and my brother and sister were out playing with their friends. I would sit at the window sill and watch my father and Michael work. I watched Michael's strong arms as he lifted the piles of wood, and watched the rhythm of his hands as he worked in the fields. They never saw me watching them, and I, of course, never told them.  
  
"I'm going to go for a walk," I announced one night after dinner as my mother sat sewing on the couch and my father was reading the paper.  
  
My father looked up and worry lines creased his forehead. "Ria. . . you know I don't like you going out there in the dark alone," he said tiredly.  
  
"Come on dad, I will take the flash light. You know no one has ever gotten hurt around here walking alone at night."  
  
"Strange men though, Ria," his voice trailed off. "You don't know what strange men can do if-"  
  
"I'll go with her if you'd like sir," Michael said leaning against the frame of the doorway to the kitchen. I turned around to look at him, and then glanced back at where my father was sitting in his chair.  
  
"OK. . . fine but take the flashlight and don't be out to long Maria." he agreed as he went back to his paper and I grabbed the flashlight from the hall closet. I led Michael outside where I turned on the flashlight, its beam brightening up the path in front of us.  
  
"Thank you for that," I said as Michael fell in step beside me. "Dad gets so worried about me going out alone at night. It isn't like anything bad has ever happened in this town."  
  
Michael chuckled, "he just loves you and doesn't want you to get hurt." "I swear, you sound more and more like him every day," I said but laughed to show him I was kidding.  
  
Michael laughed as well, and then turned his head upward. "Man," he said quietly as he stared up at the dark sky littered with stars, "would you look at that? I forget sometimes. I lived in a city in Wyoming, not a big one but the lights drowned out the stars. I swear- that is amazing." He said in awe as I too looked up and was struck by the beauty of the stars.  
  
"I guess living out here I just don't look up that much."  
  
"You take it for granted then. . . 'cause they sure are beautiful," he said his southern accent peaking out from his words as he again glanced up at the dark sky.  
  
"Did you used to live in the south?" I asked curiously, "I can hear your southern accent in your voice."  
  
"Yeah, Alabama actually. Lived in a small town there. I was actually born there, just like my mother. I got the accent and I guess it just stuck with me."  
  
"I like it," I said before I could catch myself. I blushed furiously after the words had escaped my mouth, thankful that it was dark and he couldn't see my red cheeks.  
  
"So have you all lived here your whole lives?" Michael asked.  
  
"Yeah, well, my mom was born in this house actually. She inherited it from her father after he died. That was when she and my dad moved down here. I was born in that house and so were my brother and my sister. That house is all I have ever known."  
  
"Wow, I can't imagine living in a place your whole life. I was born in Alabama, moved to Tennessee, moved to Oregon, and then finally settled into Wyoming during my high school years. I just can't imagine living in a place where everyone knows each other either. My town in Wyoming isn't too big, but I don't know everyone or anything." Michael said as we slowed down slightly, and we approached a small pond. He looked up at the sky again.  
  
The moon was full that night and it was so bright hanging over the horizon. When he stopped talking, the night was completely silent except for the quiet, rhythmic sound of the crickets and animals that were around us. My breath caught in my throat as I looked over at Michael, and through the darkness of the night, I saw him staring at me in the moonlight.  
  
My eyes caught his and I felt my heart pounding in my chest. My gaze kept his until he blinked and pulled away quickly.  
  
"We should get back. . . your dad will be worried if we don't," he said not meeting my eyes.  
  
"Yeah, you're right," I agreed as we slowly began the silent walk back towards the bright house in the distance.  
  
~* Two days later *~  
  
Two days later we were sitting having our lunch at the kitchen table. Michael and my father had come in to eat the sandwiches that my mother had made for us all. There was the normal talk of what Michael and he had done that day, and everyone was eating when I heard the doorbell ring. My mother silently got up and went through the family room to answer the door. When she came back a few moments later I was surprised when she told me that there was someone at the door for me.  
  
I silently slid my chair out and headed over to the door.  
  
"Hey girl, you didn't actually think you were going to go the whole summer without seeing ME did you?" Liz asked, leaning up against the doorway with her arms crossed across her chest. I smiled and laughed at her. Out of all the people in my high school I had gotten along with Liz the most. Liz was the kind of girl anyone could like. She was short for her age, with dark brown hair that fell towards her shoulder.  
  
"Hey Liz, what's up?" I said laughing again as I walked over toward her.  
  
"Well nothing Maria, except for the fact that my best friend decided she wasn't even going to SEE me before she headed off to college! I mean, really Maria, what's up with that?" She smiled as she shook her head and walked over and gave me a tight hug. "How have you been, Ria?"  
  
"Pretty good actually. The summer has been good to me so far. Anyway, come on, let's go up to my room where we can talk. First, come and see everyone- my father was just asking me the other day what your plans were for college," I said as I led her toward the kitchen. "Hey everyone, it's Liz." I announced as we entered the kitchen and everyone's turned to look at us.  
  
"Elizabeth, so good to see you!" My father exclaimed reaching his hand towards hers and shaking it firmly.  
  
"Nice to see you too, Mr. DeLuca. And you too Johnny and Emily," her gaze traveled to Michael, "and I don't believe I know you. . ." her sentence trailed off in curiosity.  
  
"Oh yeah, Liz, this is Michael, Michael this is Liz." I said and Michael smiled at her.  
  
"Nice to meet you Liz." he nodding in her direction.  
  
"Mom, I'm done. We are just going to go up to my room ok?" I said and my mother agreed and we headed up the stairs and into my room. I shut the door after we had entered.  
  
"Oh- my- GOD!" Liz said and fell onto my bed.  
  
"What?" I asked curiously as I sat down next to her.  
  
"What? WHAT!? Ria, like you don't even KNOW what I am talking about. I can't believe you've had THAT living in your house all summer and still you didn't call me over or anything! I mean, how evil are you?" She said and giggled.  
  
"You mean Michael?"  
  
"'You mean Michael?'" She mimicked me, "of course I mean Michael! Honey, he is fine!"  
  
I laughed and shook my head, Liz's wacky side is what I had missed most over the summer.  
  
"Liz, he is just a guy working for my dad for the summer," I said trying to brush it off like it was nothing.  
  
"Just a GUY? Just a guy, Maria? Yeah right. . . give me details. Now!" she said and laughed again scooting closer to me on the bed anxious for information.  
  
"My dad decided he needed help this summer on the farm, and he got Michael's name from a friend of his. He came early this summer and has been here ever since." I said picking a piece of lint from the bed spread.  
  
"So. . . what? Do you like him? Does he like you? Come on Maria! I need details here, DETAILS!" She sighed falling back on the bed. "Oh, you have all the luck. I swear, a hot guy living with you? I mean, sheesh! This stuff never happens to me."  
  
"I swear Lizzie, nothing is going on. I mean- he is 20! And it isn't like he is staying here forever... hell it isn't like I am staying here forever. When the summer is over I am going to UNL and he is going to Wyoming. . . stuff like this doesn't work out. And anyway- why would a guy like that have a thing for me anyway?" I said and looked back over at her.  
  
She sat up and looked at me, "Ria! What are you talking about? Of course a guy like that would like you. You're a beautiful girl Maria, don't think any different."  
  
I rolled my eyes at her, "yeah right Liz, but thank you anyway. Just don't hold your breath or anything- I highly doubt anything will happen with me and Michael. Even if it did, a summer can never last forever." 


	3. Under the Summer Sky

Author's Note: This is so exciting! REVIEWERS! You guys are awesome! All three of you! (trickhayden- you are my long lost best reviewer, hehe) Anyway, you guys made this worth writing, I hope you enjoy it and I hope it compels you to keep reading. Update hopefully coming soon, please keep reviewing! (By the way, sorry this is a pretty short chapter.)  
  
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**That night**  
  
I sat on the front porch that night and stared up at the stars. Michael was right- they really were beautiful. I had been thinking all day about my conversation with Liz. Did she actually think that Michael could ever like me? It was crazy and I knew it. Guys like Michael just didn't like me. It had always been and always would be like that.  
  
I heard the screen door slam behind me and turned my head to see Michael walk out. He smiled at me and lowered his tall frame onto the steps next to me.  
  
"The stars?" he questioned and I nodded.  
  
"Yeah, the stars."  
  
"At least I finally got you to look at them," he said and laughed quietly looking up into the sky.  
  
"So, your friend seems nice- Liz was it?" He asked.  
  
"Yeah, Liz," I chuckled, "she's a little crazy sometimes but you get used to her, she's really sweet." I said as I glanced over at him.  
  
"She seems like a good friend," he agreed, nodding slightly. "It's always nice to have good friends you can rely on."  
  
I sat for a moment and thought about what he had said. I'd never really thought of it that way, but I did trust Liz as someone I could rely on in a bad situation. "I was always kind of the loner in our high school," I said breaking the silence. Michael looked over at me, waiting for me to continue. "I mean. . . I had friends, but I wasn't close to any of them. I went to such a small school that you were kind of friends with everyone, but I rarely did things outside of school, I wasn't one of the 'popular ones.' I always felt like the outsider."  
  
The two of us sat in silence for awhile, just taking in our surroundings. Finally he spoke, and I never could have expected what he ended up saying. "Now I find that hard to believe. You just don't seem to me like the kind of girl who could disappear into the shadows, Maria DeLuca." And with that, he stood up and walked slowly into the house, leaving me sitting all alone, his words still echoing through my head.  
  
*~A week or so later~*  
  
For the next week, Michael and I didn't talk that much. We didn't have conversations under the stars; we barely had conversations at the dinner table. Even so, I began to trust in him. I always felt his presence. I could feel his eyes on me when I was eating my dinner, his dark eyes searching into my soul. It was like he knew something about me that I didn't, saw something in me that I'd never seen. I couldn't explain how he was making me feel.  
  
We joked around as we had in the past. He would come in while I was watching Emily and Johnny and distract them with a story from his past for awhile, to give me a rest. Michael always seemed to have a story to tell, and I could see that my younger siblings were in awe of him. When he would finish the story, he would rise from the couch, say his goodbyes to Johnny and Emily, and give me a wink as he walked out of the room. I didn't know what to think of Michael.  
  
Late one night, I awoke with a start. My breathing was uneasy, and I knew something must have woken me up. My eyes scanned the room slowly, and stopped abruptly. Michael was standing in the entrance to my room, his strong structure filling the doorway. Without a word, he turned and began walking down the hall silently. Puzzled at his presence, and compelled by something I couldn't understand, I followed him down the stairs and out the back door.  
  
The summer heat wrapped around me as I quietly shut the door behind me and took small cautious steps toward him. He stood staring up at the sky, not saying a word. The only sound came from the crickets.  
  
Michael looked over at me and shook his head, "I never should have done that." He said quietly, his voice barely rising above the noise of the crickets.  
  
"Done what, Michael?" I asked curiously, taking another step toward him. He, in return, took a step away. "What's wrong?"  
  
"I never should have. . ." his sentence trailed off and he shook his head again. "I never should have gone to your room." He stopped, it looked as if he were searching his mind for the right words to say. "Look Maria, I don't know what it is about you but. . . but there's something that just draws me to you. I try and stay so strong, I try to not let people in, but there's something about you. Something that makes me weak, something that makes me want to let you in. I can't though."  
  
My objections rose to my lips. "But Michael I-"  
  
"No," he cut me off with a shake of his head. "I can't Maria, I can't. You're Harold's daughter, my boss's daughter. Even if you weren't, you're too much younger than me. What you feel for me, it's not real. You may think it is, but it isn't." I could see in his eyes that he didn't even believe his own words.  
  
I took a step closer to him and he looked down at me, his eyes staring deep into mine. "I don't believe you Michael, and I can tell you don't even believe yourself. Don't push me away just because you're scared." I took a step closer to him, our bodies were nearly touching now. His gaze never left mine as his hand reached over and touched my cheek slightly.  
  
I could feel my heart beating in my chest, its rhythm falling in tune with the crickets' song as Michael slowly leaned down toward me, his other arm sliding around my waist. Our lips slowly connected, shyly at first, and then more intensely as I felt the tension between us disappear. I could feel Michael's emotions pouring out in the passion of his kiss as both of his arms wrapped around me. And there, under the stars, Michael and I began our story. The stars held our present, and only the stars could see our future. 


	4. Hidden by Darkness

A/N- Hello all! Sorry for the wait on this chapter. My computer has been having some problems lately, I almost lost this chapter! Thankfully though, here it is. I hope you like it, review please! Oh, and thank you to all my WONDERFUL reviewers!  
  
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*~The Next Day~*  
  
The knock on the door the next evening startled me out of my thoughts. I'd been thinking about the same thing all day, Michael. I couldn't get that kiss out of my mind, no matter how hard I tried. He kept sneaking me secret smiles throughout lunch and dinner, and I knew he'd been thinking about it too.  
  
Slowly I got up from the couch and headed over to open the door. I was surprised to see Liz standing there in the dying light of the evening.  
  
"Hey Maria!" She said excitedly and I knew Liz had something up her sleeve. She stepped into the house and gave me a quick hug before she began to speak again. "I decided to stop by and invite you to this thing we have going on tonight. Tony has decided to have everyone over to his house for a get-together-shindig-type-thing. So I just wanted to see if you wanted to come with me."  
  
I was just about to politely reject when I heard the floorboards creak behind me, and looked back to see Michael walking through the living room toward the kitchen.  
  
"And you too!" Liz exclaimed loudly and Michael stopped and looked over at Liz questioningly. She laughed nervously, "I mean, you should come too Michael. We're all going over to this guy's house, and it will be really fun I think. You and Maria should definitely come."  
  
"Well I don't know Liz, I wouldn't want to impose on-"Michael began to speak but Liz cut him off.  
  
"Impose? No way! We're an open group and we love to meet new people. And Ria hasn't done anything with the group all summer. I really want you two to come with me."  
  
Michael nodded, "well, if Mara wants me too, I would love to come along. I haven't really gotten to see any of this town except the DeLuca farm, it will be good to have some fun." He gave me a smile, and I too smiled, turning to Liz.  
  
"Sure Liz, to Tony's house it is."  
  
*~An hour or so later~*  
  
After a bit of persuasion, my father allowed me to go with Liz to Tony's. He was very reluctant at first, but when Michael offered to go along, he agreed and told us to be home by midnight. The bonds between my father and Michael had grown strong in the fields, and I knew that his trust in Michael was nothing against me, it was just something that grew with the close relationship between the two men.  
  
The drive was mostly silent as we followed behind Liz's car to the party. The radio sang out lowly as Michael and I both sat in silence. I could feel Michael's quick glances in my direction, and I knew that after last night our relationship was never going to be as it was before.  
  
I maneuvered the truck in behind Liz's car as she parked on the crowded street. Michael and I climbed out and walked slowly over to Liz, our walk as silent as the whole drive had been.  
  
"Well, here we are!" Liz exclaimed excitedly, shooting a glance in my direction. I ignored the glance and looked toward the house. I could hear the music and laughter of my previous classmates pouring out of the house, and for a moment I was reluctant, wondering why I had ever come. I felt the soft touch of Michael's hand as he ran it over the skin of my fore arm and I glanced over to see his reassuring smile. He could see my reluctance, he could sense my trepidation. I smiled at him as we entered the loud house, reassured knowing that he was there next to me.  
  
I recognized everyone at the party, and they all recognized me. Everyone offered their hellos, none extremely warm. Liz had many people to greet, everyone had always loved Liz. Eyes would wander from me to Michael, and then back to me again. I could hear their thoughts, wondering who Maria DeLuca could have brought to the party. I introduced him to those who asked, and quickly and graciously followed Liz when she motioned for us to follow.  
  
We found an empty couch in the corner of the room, and the three of us sat down, grateful for a place to sit and still blend into the crowd.  
  
"So Michael, this is your official welcome to Nebraska." She smiled, leaning over me to look Michael in the eye. "A Sweet Water South High School party, oh the joys of living in Nebraska!" Even through the music we could hear the sarcasm in Liz's voice and Michael laughed, looking around at the group.  
  
"DELUCA!" I heard a scream from across the room and strained my eyes to see where the voice was coming from. "Maria DeLuca! Where on earth have you been all summer?" The deep voice screamed as I watched someone break through the crowds and walk over toward us.  
  
I laughed and shook my head. "Hello Paul," I said rolling my eyes as he squeezed himself on the couch next to me. "How have you been?"  
  
"Pretty good Maria, pretty good. I was beginning to wonder if you were ever going to show yourself in town again, though. It made me sad to think that I wouldn't get to see you again before summer's end."  
  
"I had to go to their house and drag them out, Paul! They've been cooped up there all summer," Liz said, breaking into the conversation. Paul leaned over me and his gaze traveled over to Michael, as if he'd just realized that there was a foreign body on the couch with us.  
  
Paul stuck out his hand, "hey man, I'm Paul." He said, and Michael shook the outstretched hand.  
  
"I'm Michael."  
  
"Michael is from Wyoming, he's living with us for the summer and is helping my father out on the farm," I explained, watching the two shake hands.  
  
Liz shot me a look over the two and I shook my head, I knew what she was looking at me for, and now was not the time. I saw Michael look at Liz, and then back at me in confusion, and I smiled, trying to brush it off.  
  
"Well Maria, I'm afraid I must leave you now to make the rounds at this fine party. Please tell me I'm going to see you again this summer!" He exclaimed as he rose from the couch and turned toward me. "After all, you can't hide forever!" And with that, he disappeared into the crowd.  
  
*~Later that night~*  
  
The drive home was as silent as the drive to the party had been. I almost wished we hadn't gone, the whole night had been awkward. After Paul had left, we made small talk with whoever decided to stop and talk to us, and Michael met the people I went to school with. I didn't have tight bonds with those people, they were hardly my friends at all.  
  
The radio hummed quietly in the truck as we drove down the barren roads toward our farm. I could feel the tension, and I knew Michael wanted me to speak, he wanted me to say something, but I couldn't. I didn't know what I could say to him.  
  
We turned onto the road that connected to the farm, and I drove up to the dark house, stopping the car and turning it off. The silence that fell after the radio ceased was unnerving. Slowly I opened the door, and climbed out of the truck, Michael followed my lead. As I began to walk to the house, I felt Michael grab my arm and I slowly turned around to look at him.  
  
"Will it always be like this, Maria?" Michael asked, breaking the silence, his words mirroring the question I'd been asking myself all day. I looked up at him, his eyes were pinned on me in an inquiring gaze. "I- I feel something for you Maria. I've never felt this before. All the girls I've dated in the past, it never felt like this. I just- I don't want to lose you just because of what happened last night."  
  
I shook my head. "Michael, what happened last night, that kiss, I've been waiting for that all summer. You- you transfix me, I've wanted that all summer, I've wanted YOU all summer. I was just so scared, I am still scared. I don't know what is going to happen, all I know is that I feel something for you too, something deep. Something I've never felt before." I could see the relief in Michael's eyes as I finished talking.  
  
He took a tentative step toward me, and leaned down, our lips connecting, our embrace hidden in the darkness of the night.  
  
Suddenly, the night ceased as light flooded the yard. Michael and I pulled apart and looked toward the house where the porch light glared at us and the front door opened. My father stood in the doorway. My heart raced, wondering whether my father had seen Michael and I kiss. He couldn't know. If my father saw, I knew he would send Michael away.  
  
"Hello!" He called to us as he opened the door, a smile plastered on his face. I saw Michael's tensed muscles relaxed as we both realized that my father knew nothing. "How was the party?" He asked as he neared us.  
  
"Oh it was alright, just the same old people." I answered as I began to walk back to the house. "We saw Seth, Anne, Tony, Susan, Paul-"  
  
"Paul! Sam Walker's boy! Such a fine young man. You really should call him up, Maria, Sam told me that he always did have a little crush on you." I felt my cheeks flush. I knew my father had always thought highly of Paul Walker, I shouldn't have brought him up. Especially because I had known what my father just told me for a very long time.  
  
"I- I don't think so, dad. After all, I'll be going off to college pretty soon, anyway. It wouldn't work out," I explained nervously, shooting a glance at Michael as we reached the front door. His gaze was pinned on me as I opened the front door.  
  
"Well Maria, you know I just want to see you happy." My father said, laying a hand on my shoulder. "Paul is a fine boy, you only deserve the best."  
  
That night, as I tried to get to sleep, Michael's face kept flashing through my brain. The look on his face when my father talked about Paul Walker, the look of pain. Pain because he knew that my father would never embrace the idea of Michael and I being together like he would the idea of Paul and I. That could never happen, and my father could never know. If my father ever found out, I knew that it would be the end of us, and the sun would set on our love before it even could begin. 


	5. Warmth

A/N- Yes, it's been absolutely forever since I've updated this. And yes, I have absolutely no good excuse. If there was anyone waiting for the fifth chapter of this story, then just know you have keirah to thank. She left a review of the story and when I got it, I remembered exactly how much I loved this story. So, I decided to take another stab at it. What's strange is that since I last wrote my writing style has changed so much and it's very evident. I just hope that people enjoy this story. Even if reviewers are scarce, I still love Fading Summer Warmth.

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Chapter 5

I could feel it in the air the minute I woke up. I sat up quickly, looking around my room, lit by the dim light of the morning. Something was different, something was off. I slowly lifted the covers and climbed out of bed, heading over to my window. I pulled back the curtains and looked out to find that my suspicions had been correct.

My whole life I've always been able to feel a storm coming. I can't really explain how I know, but it's like I can feel it forming in the pit of my stomach- dread or some strange sensation that normally isn't there.

I stepped back from my window and turned around, the dark clouds I'd seen out on the horizon still in my mind as I opened my door and walked toward the living room. I stood silently and looked out the front window at the threatening sky. I felt a timid touch on the back of my arm and jumped, turning around. I was met by eyes the color of the dark grey sky.

"Michael," I breathed and laughed. "You scared me. Why aren't you in the fields?" I asked, knowing it had to be serious if my father had come inside.

"Your dad was worried about the sky, said there might be something heading our way- tornadoes and such." Michael said looking out the window behind me. "I admit; it sure doesn't look good."

His warm voice was soothing to me, but my stomach shifted at the sound of the word. Tornado. My whole life I'd been afraid of tornadoes, and we'd had no small feat of avoiding them. Every spring, we got ready for the tornadoes. They were inevitable, and every spring my fear would peak back out, reminding me of what was to come. We'd been lucky in Sweetwater, we hadn't had a serious tornado in years, but even I couldn't forget the last time we had. No one could, it was etched in the mind of all I knew who could remember it. Emily and Johnny were too little to remember, of course, but they'd heard the stories enough times to feel like they'd been there with us, huddled in the storm cellar, so deathly afraid.

The storm seemed to come on quickly. In what seemed like only a minute, the sky tore, and rain blanketed the earth, pounding heavily on the roof and drowning out the noises of the house. Johnny and Emily sat in the corner quietly playing a game, their eyes darting nervously to the window and the dangerous sky up above. As I sat and watched them, I heard the noise of the weatherman on the TV, and heard my father and Michael speaking in hushed voices about the storm. I knew it would come, and I was anxious.

I felt the prickling on my neck before I even heard the sirens. We ran to the cellar as the eerie noise rang out over the fields, thunder breaking through the siren noise and lightning tearing through the sky. We huddled in the dark cellar, my father holding the flashlight as he secured the door. We sat in silence, each with our own thoughts and fears as we listened, waited, and prayed that it wouldn't come. I felt Michael's hand slowly, secretly glide across my back and I smiled at him, knowing he could see the fear in my eyes.

"Just stay close," my father said, and we huddled close to each other, feeling the wind whip through the cracks in the door and listening to the storm surging overhead. My heart pounded in fear, but I felt Michael's reassuring presence next to me and even with my eyes shut tightly, I could sense him watching me. Slowly his hand slid and cupped my waist as we stood in the dark corner of the storm cellar. I leaned my head against his shoulder and shut my eyes tightly, trying to block out the sirens in the distance, my sister's soft cries, and the noise of the rain beating on the roof of the storm cellar.

Slowly, the storm passed. The pounding rain turned into a trickle, and we could see the sun slowly filtering through. My father sighed, and opened the door cautiously, before swinging it open, sunlight spilling in from the outside. The sudden light startled me, and I looked up quickly. For a brief moment I caught my father's eye before Michael quickly moved away from me and, without having to ask, I knew he'd seen us. He turned and we all walked out of the dark cellar into the brightness of the damp air.

A Few Days Later

Afraid that my father had seen us, Michael and I kept our distance for awhile. As the days went by, we realized that my father didn't suspect a thing. We assumed he'd passed it off a Michael comforting me in a moment of crisis. Although we were relieved, I could tell that my father had come a little too close for comfort to discovering the secret Michael and I had kept buried in the darkness.

It was amazing to me how I could grow closer to Michael with each day that went by. We hardly spoke, but the glances he stole at dinner, the winks as he passed through the family room where I sat reading, the whispers and stolen kisses behind the barn. With each day I found myself sinking deeper and deeper into Michael's eyes. I tried to ignore the browning edges of the corn as the summer days ran by- their sun burnt leaves attempting to remind me that summer would eventually end and then our future was a mystery.

That night after dinner, my family sat in the living room. My father and Michael were reading the paper, my mother sat perched on a chair reading a book, and my siblings sat in the corner playing a game. I excused myself and walked quietly from the room. After using the bathroom I washed and dried my hands. I leaned slowly against the sink and stared at my face in the mirror. My skin had browned from the hot Nebraska sun, and my eyes looked tired. I'd had too many sleepless nights thinking about Michael, only to fall asleep and dream about the depths of his eyes.

I shook my head and made my way toward the bathroom door. I walked out and the hall was dark; I didn't see him standing in the shadows. He came up behind me and I smiled as he wrapped his arms around my waist. I turned around and his lips caught mine as I leaned against the wall, the heat of his body pressed up against mine warming my heart. I could hear the peaceful noises of my family in the family room down the hall as I gazed at Michael's face in the darkened hall.

He leaned toward me and placed his mouth near my ear. "Tomorrow I'm going to town," he whispered. "Get your father to let you go with me." He pulled away, kissed my cheek, and smiled at me. Slowly he unwrapped his arms from me. He smiled sweetly, turning and walking back toward the family room.

The Next Day

I remember how the sun shined that day. We rolled the windows down so that our hair would fly in the warm breeze, and Michael turned the radio to a local country station. I looked over at Michael as Willie Nelson crooned from the radio and smiled as the light reflected off his hair as he tilted his head back in laughter. I remember feeling the warmth of that happiness as he drove down the dusty country road. I leaned my head back on the seat and closed my eyes, feeling the sun on my face as I smiled.

We drove into the small, rundown town and Michael parked the truck in front of the hardware store. My father had asked him to pick up some tools and supplies that they'd been needing. They were taking a day off from the fields and he'd given Michael some money so that we could get lunch and spend some time downtown.

We walked down the isles talking and laughing as Michael picked up things from the shelf. I felt his hand slide into mine and I cast my glance backward, smiling secretly as we made our way through the small store.

We bought lunch at the local diner. The mid-summer heat deserted the town, so we were the only people eating that day. We ate slowly, savoring the time away from the house and the company of each other. After we'd eaten and paid, we walked from the diner to the truck and Michael stopped, smiling at me.

"So Maria, what do you want to do now?" He asked, leaning in toward me.

"Well," I looked around at the small run-down stores. "There isn't a whole lot in town, but we could hang out here. We could go for a drive too, if you'd like?" I said.

He smiled down at me, "yeah, let's go for a drive."

We drove through the town and back out on the country road. The houses grew further and further apart and the corn stretched across the rolling hills. We were ten miles from town when Michael turned off the main road and onto a small gravel road that I'd never noticed before.

"Where are we going?" I asked, looking toward him.

He smiled, glancing sideways toward me. "We're just driving, Ria. Be patient and you'll see." We drove for another five to ten miles, the road getting bumpier as we rode along.

Finally we came to a spot where the tall trees dipped into the ground and the gravel road ended and grass took over, and the houses surrounding us disappeared. It was evident that a house had once been where our truck rested, but had disappeared sometime in the passing of time. Michael turned off the engine, leaving the radio running, and jumped out of the truck, running around to open my door. As I hopped out, he leaned over the seat and turned up the radio and closed the door behind me.

"Michael," I said, smiling slyly at him. "What are we doing here?" I looked around at the bank of trees that surrounded us. The trees were tall, almost completely engulfing us. Light filtered through the leaves and scattered light on Michael's shoulders as he leaned toward me.

"Shh, Maria," he whispered, his breath warm on my cheek. He led me over to the grass and he sat. He patted the spot next to him and I sat down, feeling the soft grass under my legs as the silence wrapped around us.

"I thought we should get away for a day," he explained and smiled. "We don't ever really get a chance to talk at the house."

I knew he was referring to my father and I nodded, looking into his eyes. "Well, what do you want to talk about?"

He didn't answer, but merely reached for my hand and took it into his. We sat in silence for a few minutes, our fingers lacing in and out of each other as he stared down at our hands. I looked at his eyes cast downwards and smiled, feeling again the happiness of the day.

He took a breath and his eyes flicked upward toward mine. "I love you, Maria." He said the words almost as a sigh, as if the words rushing from his body were releasing something deep inside of him.

His words caught me off-guard and I paused, staring into his eyes. Slowly I removed my hand from his and reached both of my hands upward, cupping his face in my hands. Our eyes searched each other for a moment and I felt my heart swell. "I love you too," I said, although I knew the words were unnecessary. He knew I loved him; he could see it in my eyes every day.

Slowly and tentatively we kissed, and he leaned me backward, the grass forming around my back as I rested. I heard the radio announcer in the background as Michael's fingers slowly wandered up my abdomen. Our bodies stretched out and he paused, pulling away from me and staring down my eyes for a moment. I nodded and I saw the smile form on his face. For a moment I thought about how it was the same smile he'd had on the first day as he greeted my father- that half smile that made his whole face light up in happiness. His smile faded as he again leaned down and ran his lips over mine.

Our hearts slowly entwined, circling around us as we both let go. I felt the happiness that we'd been building all summer wrap around us as we lay in the grass on that hot, sunny day. As we slowly let go, I remember hearing the soft voice of Deanna Carter playing out from the radio as the sun shined down in recognition of the love we shared, and the summer that we hoped could never end.

_Like strawberry wine, and seventeen_

_The hot July moon saw everything_

_My first taste of love_

_Oh, bittersweet and green on the vine_

_Like strawberry wine

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Just so you know, the song is "Strawberry Wine" by Deanna Carter. This song is actually what gave me the idea for this story waaay back when I started writing it in the summer of 2002. I love that song, and I thought that it was fitting that it be placed in the story since it was its inspiration. :) 


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